Sermon Response Guide
PRIMARY SCRIPTURE:
Isaiah 53:1-12
1 Who has believed what he has heard from us?
And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
2 For he grew up before him like a young plant,
and like a root out of dry ground;
he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,
and no beauty that we should desire him.
3 He was despised and rejected by men,
a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief;
and as one from whom men hide their faces
he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
4 Surely he has borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed him stricken,
smitten by God, and afflicted.
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with his wounds we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned—every one—to his own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,
yet he opened not his mouth;
like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,
and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,
so he opened not his mouth.
8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away;
and as for his generation, who considered
that he was cut off out of the land of the living,
stricken for the transgression of my people?
9 And they made his grave with the wicked
and with a rich man in his death,
although he had done no violence,
and there was no deceit in his mouth.
10 Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him;
he has put him to grief;
when his soul makes an offering for guilt,
he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;
the will of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.
11 Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied;
by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,
make many to be accounted righteous,
and he shall bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many,
and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,
because he poured out his soul to death
and was numbered with the transgressors;
yet he bore the sin of many,
and makes intercession for the transgressors.
Key Points
- Our rescue comes as:
1) A surprise
God has always loved to rescue his people, but no one expected God’s rescue to look like Jesus Christ.
2) A substitute
We have all been infected with sin, but Jesus was stricken and afflicted for us so we could be whole and healed in him.
3) A sacrifice
Jesus poured out his life to death so we could move from death to life in him. - In the same way God’s rescue comes as a surprise, Christ is calling us to surprise people with his grace – with shocking acts of kindness.
- In the same way God’s rescue comes as a substitute, Christ is calling us to listen and take on the pain of others – to intercede on their behalf in prayer.
- In the same way God’s rescue comes as a sacrifice, Christ is calling us to give to others what God has given to us (our time, gifts, and energies).
Memory Verse
Ask God to write this word on your heart this week:
“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
-Isaiah 41:10
Questions for Reflection
Take time to reflect and respond to these questions on your own in the presence of the Holy Spirit, or with trusted friends or family members:
If you do not have a copy of the 2021 Awaiting Advent guide, you can download it here. Take time to read the introduction letter and today’s reading, then answer the following questions.
1: What do you think was so surprising about the rescue of Jesus Christ to those who had been awaiting God’s rescue for centuries past?
2: What do you think is so surprising about the rescue of Jesus Christ to us today?
3: How have you personally experienced Christ’s rescue in your own life?
4: As we commit to live in light of Christ’s rescue together, we invite you to join us as we seek to do these 3 things this week:
· Spend quality time with someone else who you think may be running from God or feels far from God.
· Bear someone else’s burden by listening to them share about grief or helping them with something.
· Intercede for someone else in a time of focused prayer on their behalf.
*Join us as we spend this Christmas season journeying through our 2021 Awaiting Advent guide. Take time to seek God in his word and in prayer. Then, reach out to others in our faith family to share what God is showing you with each new week of Advent.
Pray
Lord, from beginning to end, your word shows us that you love to rescue your people. You always have and you always will. We thank you for the rescue we have received in Christ Jesus, but we confess we are still desperate for your rescue, Lord. We need you. We need your help. We need your hope. Hold us and heal us, and open our eyes to see how we can help others as you continue to help us.
